In Chicago strike, teachers' issues not all at stake

by Judy Keen, USA TODAY

Members of the Chicago Teachers Union distribute strike signs on Sept. 8 in Chicago.

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CHICAGO -- Striking teachers marched in picket lines Monday as parents chafed at the disruption and debate intensified over the implications for Democratic Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the future of public schools and public-sector unions.

About 26,000 teachers and support staff went on strike for the first time since 1987 after contract talks broke down Sunday. Among key issues: whether laid-off teachers get priority for openings and the weight of test scores in teacher evaluations. Negotiations resumed Monday.

"I do believe that we are down to the last few issues," Emanuel said Monday at Maranatha Church, which is offering activities for displaced students. "This is, in my view, a strike of choice, and it's the wrong choice for our children."

"Stay at the table, finish it for our children," he said.

Emily Lee, 31, a mother of two public school students, had a message for striking teachers: "Get back to work. The city is broke; children are getting murdered in the streets and education is the answer."

Rob Heselton, a teacher at Jones College Prep for 12 years, said the important issues for him are "not as much salary" as class size, extra days and hours added to the school calendar this year and the way Emanuel handled those issues. "It was just the fact that it was forced on us," he said. "I don't want to be out here at all, but it's definitely worth fighting for."

Average teacher pay is $76,000 a year. The school system has a $665 million budget deficit. Teachers voted in June to authorize a strike if a new agreement could not be reached.

The stakes are high for Emanuel, who was elected in 2011. He promised to improve public schools in part by extending school days.

Dick Simpson, head of the political science department at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said a long strike could undermine Emanuel's reputation as a leader who can get things done. He also noted that unions are a major source of support for Emanuel's Democratic Party.

"The unions aren't the only game in town, they're not as strong as they used to be," Simpson said, "but if the mayor isn't able to reasonably settle the strike that will weaken him in that sector."

Robert Bruno, a University of Illinois at Chicago professor of labor relations who teaches a class on unions and politics, says a prolonged strike here could even affect President Obama's re-election effort. Because unions play key roles in getting out the vote in some states, he says, "it certainly doesn't serve the broader interests of the Democratic Party."

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney made the political implications clear. In a statement, he said teachers unions "have too often made plain that their interests conflict with those of our children" and noted that Vice President Biden last year told teachers union members not to doubt Obama's commitment to them.

Bruno also said the strike could be "a pivotal point" in the shift toward introducing competition to public schools and making them "function more like private businesses." If the teachers union here fails, he said, "then this movement simply continues and it's likely to get locked into place for a generation."

The dispute here also could affect the national debate over public-sector unions. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, won a high-profile effort in 2011 to end collective bargaining for most public unions. Ohio voters last year repealed a Republican-backed law that restricted collective bargaining for public workers.

The Labor Department says 11.8% of wage and salary workers belonged to unions in 2011, down from 20.1% in 1983. Last year, 37% of public-sector workers were union members, compared with 6.9% of private-sector workers.

Chicago Public Schools kept 144 schools open from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for activities and meals, 59 churches that operate as havens were open to students. Parks and 76 public libraries offered activities. There are more than 350,000 students in the system. Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy said he would take officers off desk duty and deploy them to deal protests and students who could be roaming the streets.

The mood among strikers and parents was more frustration than anger. Susan Hickey, a school social worker for 18 years who is on the bargaining team, said pay and health benefits are among remaining issues. "Chicago is a union town," she said. "The assault on unions has been horrible."

Frank Menzies, a teacher for 15 years at Jones College Prep, said "equity, fair labor practices and dignity" are at stake. "Money is not a big deal," he said.

Karen Stolzenberg, an art teacher for 25 years, agreed. Her classes average 32 students, making it "hard to build a relationship with students on a daily basis," she said. "None of us wanted this," she said. "I want to be in the classroom, but this is important."

Jeff Bell, 41, a commodities broker who has three children in Chicago schools, said he was disgusted with both sides of the dispute. "Who's thinking about the kids?" he asked. "Mine are at home instead of being where they should be -- in a classroom, learning. Fix this; get it resolved. Our kids are paying the price, and that's a real shame."

Ann Chase, 30, whose daughter is a first-grader, said she was torn. "I think our teachers should be paid more, but I don't think a strike is the best way for them to get their message out," she said. "It mostly makes me sad that it had to come to this."

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